Harry Potter and the Terrific Trunk (Placeholder name)
by Wingsandvenom
Summary: Deciding to spend his money wisely, Harry buys a trunk which holds doors to various Hogwarts locations. What kind of discoveries will Harry do with this terrific new trunk? AU: Aunt Petunia tells Harry he is a wizard, and he starts thinking smartly. Rated K for now.
1. Chapter 1: A worthwhile investment

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and everything assosiated with it is owned by J.K. Rowling. I'm just having a little fun writing a story, and my only (but sufficient!) payment is your gratitude and reviews. Thank you so much J.K. Rowling for granting us access to your world, you're amazing!

So without further ado...

* * *

_Chapter 1: A worthwhile investment_

Harry was awoken with a start by a sharp knocking on his cupboard door. "Wake up!" sounded the voice of Aunt Petunia. Groggily, Harry put on his glasses. He pulled the cord to turn on the light, and glanced down at his watch. He was surprised to see it was just 7 p.m. During work days he would get up around this time, but as it was weekend, he would have had his usual lie-in.

Not wanting to anger Aunt Petunia, he quickly got dressed. As he entered the kitchen, he saw Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon sitting at the coffee table.

"Sit down, boy." said Uncle Vernon impatiently.

Curious, he sat down. They never invited him to sit down, really. Most of the time they just ignored him, except for ordering him around.

"Popkin, come sit over here for a second, you should hear this too." Aunt Petunia said lovingly to Dudley, who was watching the telly as he normally did.

Slowly, Dudley got up and made his way to the coffee table.

Uncle Vernon looked at Aunt Petunia expectantly. She was silent for a while, apparently struggling to bring something up. Harry was about to say something, when she finally spoke.

"I got a letter from your Headmaster." she said. Harry's expression grew a bit worried. What had he done now? Besides, what did Dudley have to do with it?

"From Mr Prinns? Is something the matter?" he asked.

Aunt Petunia shook her head. She shifted uncontrollably, obviously uncomfortable. "No. It's from the Headmaster… of your new school."

Harry turned to look at Uncle Vernon, who seemed very interested in a stain in the rug. "New school? What do you mean? I thought I was going to Stonewall?" he asked her accusingly.

Once more, she shook her head. "Fine then. I will tell you. Your Headmaster send me a letter, insisting I tell you about the upcoming invitational letter."

Harry opened his mouth, but she cut him off. "Let me finish. You are… not normal." Seeing his glare, she quickly continued. "I… I mean, you are…" she seemed unwilling to say whatever she had to say.

"Come on, Petunia. Just tell the bloody boy." Uncle Vernon said impatiently.

Aunt Petunia seemed to gather her strength. "Boy… Harry… You are a wizard." she forced the words out.

Harry's jaw hit the coffee table, only rivalled by Dudley's equally open mouth. Out of all the things he had been expecting, this wasn't one of them. "I'm... I'm a what?" he stammered, convinced he had misheard her.

"A wizard." she said briskly. "My sister was one, and her good-for-nothing husband was one too. And then she had you… and I knew you would be just like them… a freak. We certainly hoped you wouldn't be, but…" she trailed off.

"An invitation should be arriving soon." she continued. "You're going to be accepted into that school. I… must admit, I wanted to hide it from you. The Headmaster though, he can be… persuasive." her eyes darted to Uncle Vernon.

"We have agreed to let you go there." he said. "You will be spending most of the year at that… school. But under no circumstances are you to return during the holidays." he finished, obviously torn between being happy that Harry would be gone, or angry he would have to do his own tasks.

Harry didn't know what to say, and he said as much. "Good." Uncle Vernon said "Don't pester us with any of your comments."

"Does that mean I will never get to see you again?" he said hopefully.

"No." said Aunt Petunia, seemingly not liking that either. "The Headmaster insisted you return for the summer holidays."

Harry was still confused, he had so many questions. "But… what do I do? I don't know what to bring… and I haven't any money." he said, worried that they might just leave him without anything.

"That is none of our concern, boy. You have been enough of a burden." Uncle Vernon said, going a bit red in the face. "Don't think we will give you any money!"

Aunt Petunia looked thoughtful for a moment. "I will send them a letter." she surrendered, obviously not too fond of the idea, but not wanting anything to do with accusations of child abuse. Her mind skipped over the fact that it was already far too late for that. "Telling them to pick you up and all. They can deal with you then."

Harry couldn't help it, he grinned. He was a wizard! He was going away from Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon and Dudley, and he was going to do magic! Magic! "Will I be able to turn anybody into a frog?" he asked despite himself.

"Quiet!" Uncle Vernon snapped. "There will be no more mention of this! Don't forget to whom you are speaking, boy!" he yelled, his face nearing a dangerous shade of purple that matched Aunt Petunia's new bag. He was wise enough not to tell Uncle Vernon this.

"Yes Uncle Vernon, sorry Uncle Vernon." he droned, having repeated that many times.

Uncle Vernon snorted. "Now move. Get out. We will tell you when we receive news."

Harry quickly staggered to his feet, before calmly walking out of the kitchen, leaving a quiet Petunia and a gaping Dudley. Closing his cupboard behind him, he jumped. He was a wizard! He just couldn't believe it! Deciding he would rest some more before waking up, he crept back into bed. It took a while for his excitement to settle, but he finally drifted off.

* * *

A few days went by, and Harry began to worry. Why was it taking this long? Had they been lying? Harry's face paled. Dudley would make fun of him for months! His thoughts were interrupted by an already opened letter being slid under his cupboard door. Curious, he picked up the envelope.

The address was written in emerald green ink, and read 'To Petunia Dursley, number 4 Privet Drive'. Sitting down on his small bed, he took out the letter.

_Dear Mrs Dursley,_

_Thank you for informing young Mr Potter so soon, he must be delighted._

_I read your concerns, and you needn't be. Harry will be picked up tomorrow, the 31th, by our gamekeeper, Hagrid, who will take him shopping in Diagon Alley. You will notice the key I have enclosed for Harry's personal trust fund, which will contain just about enough to buy him his books and robes and other supplies._

_The term will start on September 1st, and Harry may decide to either return back home, or stay at the Leaky Cauldron for a month. In case of the latter, I shall be so generous as to cover his residential costs there._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts_

Harry carefully lay down the letter on his bed. Already he was taking a liking to this seemingly very friendly man. He was happy that he had the money for supplies, if only barely. He thanked his luck. He grinned as he re-read the last line. The generous Headmaster would even pay for his stay at the Leaky Cauldron! Whatever that was, anyway.

He picked up the letter, deciding to keep it. Surely Aunt Petunia wouldn't want it, anyway. As he pushed the letter back into the envelope, he noticed the little golden key that lay inside. "That must be my trust fund key the Headmaster mentioned." he mused. He closed the envelope, and went to the kitchen to do the dishes.

* * *

Harry sat in the kitchen, sipping his tea. Although the bag was used twice before he did, with some sugar it still tasted nice. It was the 31st of July, and the gamekeeper would pick him up soon. He was going over possibilities of his shopping trip, curious as to what he would be getting, when his thoughts were interrupted by a heavy knocking on the front door.

"Get the door, boy." Uncle Vernon called out from the living room.

Harry stood up, and made his way to the front door. Opening it, he saw a giant man standing in front of him. He was at least twice as big as Uncle Vernon.

"Why hello there, Harry! My name is Rubeus Hagrid, keeper of keys and grounds fer Hogwarts. I came here ter pick yeh up!" the man bellowed, sticking out a huge hand, the size of a trashcan lid.

Hesitantly, Harry took his hand and shook it. "Pleasure meeting you, Mr Hagrid." he replied.

Hagrid's face lit up. "Please, call me Hagrid, Harry!" he looked inside. "Aren' yer Aunt an' Uncle home?" he asked.

As if on cue, Uncle Vernon came striding into the doorway, pushing Harry aside. He looked the man up and down, obviously unhappy at the man's un-normal appearance.

"You came for the boy?" he asked.

"Yeh must be Vernon Dursley!" Hagrid said. "Yes, I came ter pick 'im up." sensing Uncle Vernon's obviously unpleasant mood, he continued "We should be goin'. Lots of things ter get, and all."

Harry slipped past Uncle Vernon. "See you in the summer holidays, Uncle Vernon." he said.

"Goodbye." Uncle Vernon said, before promptly closing the door.

Harry looked at Hagrid. "Mr- I mean, Hagrid, where do we need to go?" he asked.

"Ter the Leaky Cauldron, Harry. 's in London." he replied, ushering Harry along. "We'll be takin' the bus there, if yeh don' mind." And with that, they walked to the bus station.

The trip to London was generally uneventful, with only Harry giving Hagrid his key for safekeeping.

They got out at the bus station, and Hagrid led him to a small pub, next to a hamburger tent. "Tha' be it. The Leaky Cauldron." Hagrid said, opening the door and stepping inside.

It was quite dark and shabby. Hagrid led him past two old witches, who were looking rather odd. One of them was smoking a long pipe.

"Mornin' Tom." Hagrid addressed the bartender.

"Ah, Hagrid. The usual, I presume?" the man behind the bar asked.

"Can't, Tom. I'm on official Hogwarts business." Hagrid said proudly. "Need ter get young Harry here his school supplies."

Tom turned to regard Harry.

"Good Lord, is this- can this be-? Bless my soul. Harry Potter… what an honour. Welcome back, Mr Potter, welcome back."

Several people looked up at hearing Harry's name, and almost all of those walked over to him. Most of them bowed, greeted him or asked to shake his hand. He didn't have a clue what was going on. Welcome back from what? How did these people know who he was?

"Yes, err… we should be goin', now. Got lots of stuff ter do and all." Hagrid said once more, and he hastily pushed Harry towards the back of the pub.

"What did all those people want from me, Hagrid? How did they all know who I am?"

"Because yeh're famous, Harry." he replied.

"But why am I famous? I haven't done anything!" Harry said.

And so followed the tale of the Death of the Potters, and the survival of the Boy-Who-Lived.

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. "But Hagrid… that doesn't make any sense. How did I survive, while my parents didn't? He choked up at that last part.

"Well that's the question, innit? Nobody knows, Harry. That's why yeh're so famous. Yeh're the only one who has ever survived the Killing Curse." he said.

And with that, Hagrid turned around and went into the small room they were standing in front of. On the inside were just a brick wall, and a bucket with a mop in it in the corner. Hagrid tapped the tip of his pink umbrella in counter-clockwise order on the bricks in the wall. The bricks suddenly started turning away from the middle, and soon a smooth brick arch was defined, leading to a wide corridor lined with shops, people and other interesting things.

Harry grinned. "That's so cool." he said. He had just witnessed that no, his Aunt and Uncle weren't pulling some stupid joke. That it was all real. He couldn't describe how happy he felt. He was going to Hogwarts!

Hagrid smiled at him. "Firs' we'll be goin' to the Wizarding Bank, Gringotts. Need to get yeh yer money, an' all." he said, walking through the arch.

* * *

Harry was looking at the funny creatures behind one of the counters. '_I should probably be respectful to them.' _he thought. After Hagrid gave the goblin behind the counter his Harry's key, they walked through a set of double doors at the back of the hall. The goblin entered a mine cart, and Hagrid and Harry followed him.

Harry couldn't believe his eyes when the goblin opened his vault. He had not had any money at the Dursley's, but he hadn't needed to to know that this was an amazingly large sum.

"Hagrid, how much is this?" he asked the giant figure. If he was going to go shopping, he should at least know how much he should bring with him.

Hagrid scratched his head with his overly-sized hand. "I'm not sure, Harry. 's certainly a lot yer parents left yeh. I would reckon tha' fer yer school supplies, yeh would need about a small bag full."

The goblin cleared his throat. "If I may, Mr Potter. Simply buying supplies, a medium-sized bag would do. If you would want some better equipment, however, I would suggest taking a bag a little bigger." he said.

Harry considered this. Was he content with just normal supplies? No, probably not. He wanted some improvements made, if possible. Judging from the contents of his vault, if he were to take a bag like the goblin suggested, he would still have a huge pile of gold. Making up his mind, he smiled.

"Give me a bag three times as big as your recommendation please, sir." he said.

Hagrid shifted uncontrollably. "Are yeh sure, Harry? That's a lot of money. Yeh will be needing it."

"Exactly Hagrid. I will need it. So why wouldn't I spent it on good equipment?" he retorted.

Hagrid seemed to have no valid reply to that, and thus the goblin filled a very big bag for Harry.

"So how much is in here?" Harry had to ask. He had to know his limits.

"I would assume about 500 galleons." the goblin said.

Harry's look of anticipation turned into a look of confusion. Of course he had seen that these were not just pounds, but he hadn't given it much more thought. "Right. Could you… explain to me the currency?" he asked quickly, not wanting to sound stupid.

The goblin looked at him funny, but explained it nonetheless.

"Alright, I think I got it. Thank you." Harry said. "So how much money is 500 galleons, in pounds?"

The goblin seemed to think for a moment, apparently calculating galleons to pounds. "Around 3700 pounds, sir." he said.

Harry had a sudden coughing fit. "_3700 pounds?!_" he exclaimed, not believing what he was hearing. If this bag contained nearly 4000 pounds, he couldn't even begin to fathom how much his vault contained. "But… Headmaster Dumbledore told me my little trust fund contained barely enough to buy me my school supplies!" he said.

Hagrid chuckled. "I think yer Aunt an' Uncle woulda done summat about yer money if they had known yeh had so much. Dumbledore is a good man, he is." he said.

Harry silently thanked Dumbledore for being so thoughtful. Taking the bag from the goblin, he and Hagrid sat back down in the cart. After a short ride, Harry was surprised to see them stop next to another vault. Hagrid got out.

"I'd prefer it if yeh won' tell anybody about this, Harry. Official Hogwarts business, very secretive." Hagrid said, looking a bit nervously at Harry.

Harry just nodded. Hagrid had been too kind to him, of course he wouldn't tell.

The goblin opened the vault, and Hagrid took out the small, stone-sized package inside, putting it in his pockets.

* * *

Once outside of Gringotts, Harry visited a couple of shops with Hagrid, including Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions, Flourish and Blotts, which was the book shop, the apothecary and a couple of other, smaller shops. The apothecary was especially interesting, selling things like dragon liver, redcap toenails and other amazingly disgusting things.

At last, Hagrid took him to Olivanders Wand Shop. Harry had been excited for this since they had entered the alley. Hagrid said he needed to get something, so he left Harry to pick up his wand by himself.

Once outside again, he brandished his wand. It was made of holly, had a phoenix feather core, and was eleven inches long. The shop owner, Olivander, had told him something about his wand being the brother of You-Know-Who's wand. To be quite frank, the kind, though intimidating man had scared him a little.

Harry was just wondering where he ought to go next, when Hagrid came striding into view, carrying a beautiful snow-white owl in a cage. "Harry! I bought yeh a presen'!" he called out.

Harry stared at him in awe. He had actually bought him a present! As Hagrid came closer, he saw the owl eyeing him with interest. He would come up with a good name for her later. "Hagrid… I… thank you!" he said, before promptly hugging the giant man.

Hagrid was a loss for words. "There, there." he said, patting Harry on the back. "'s no problem, Harry. 's yer birthday, after all. No need ter thank me."

Harry let him go, and took the owl from him. "Thank you, Hagrid. This means a lot to me."

Hagrid couldn't quite hide his blush. "Come on, now. We need ter get yeh yer trunk, las' of all."

* * *

The trunk shop was very elegant, refined, and bore a sign titled "Tugwood Trunks and Tapestries". The inside contained all kinds of trunks. Big trunks, small trunks, yellow trunks, spherical trunks, even a trunk which seemed to move away when you got close.

A tall witch approached them. "May I help you, young Mr…?" she asked.

"Potter. Harry Potter, ma'am." he replied.

Her eyes widened a bit, glancing for his scar for a moment, but not commenting on it. "I see. Well then, I assume you are here for your Hogwarts trunk, Mr Potter?" she asked him.

"Yes, ma'am. But if possible, I would like a more complicated trunk, not the usual." he told her.

"I see." she said again. "Well then, may I enquire as to what you were going for?"

Harry looked around. "I was hoping you would have some suggestions, ma'am." he said. "I'm not particularly experienced, to be honest."

She seemed to consider this. "Very well, then. Come with me, please." she said, before turning around and going through a side door.

Harry and Hagrid followed her. Hagrid had a mildly curious look on his face.

Inside the room were several refined trunks. These were all polished, and the metal shone brightly. Several trunks had red, green, yellow or blue metals alongside the respectively golden, silver, black and bronze ones. He correctly assumed these were for the houses Hagrid had told him about.

Madam Tugwood turned to look at him. "These are all laced with defensive charms. Of course, all trunks have them, but these are a lot heavier, and will make sure only you have access to your trunk. Other trunks might be forced open or simply opened with relative ease, while these ones require more intricate spell work to open, which is generally too difficult for the common witch or wizard." she said, waving her arms around at the trunks. "The trunks in the front all have only one or two compartments, where you can store your stuff. Most of the time, they also have smaller, side compartments. These trunks, however…" she pointed at the trunks with Hogwarts colours.

Harry looked at them more closely. "They don't look that big." he said earnestly.

She actually laughed. "I'm sorry, Mr Potter. No, they don't look that big. There are numerous expansion charms on the trunks, magically expanding them from multiple drawers to entire rooms."

"Oh." was all Harry could say, amazed. He should have expected it, really.

"Yes." she continued. "I'm not sure… how much money you are willing to spend?" she asked him.

"How much do these cost? I'm willing to pay quite a bit for a decent trunk." he said.

She nodded approvingly. "These are all around 150 galleons." she said, motioning to most of the trunks in the room." she said, hoping he wouldn't find it too steep. To his credit, he didn't even flinch.

"That is acceptable. I spent barely 50 galleons on school supplies, so I still have over 400 galleons." he said to her surprise.

"I… very well." she said. She seemed to think for a moment. "I still have one… special trunk. It's the only one I have left, they are very rare. The last time I sold one was in 1938, to a young man expressing interest in rare artefacts. While they aren't artefacts, they are rare and capable of many things." she said, while leading them further into the room.

At the back of the room was a little step, on which stood a normal-sized trunk. It looked stunning. It was made of polished dark word, and had silver metal lain all around its curves. The metal strips seemed to be thick. The side halves were a bit thinner, but had beautiful, emerald green metal on top of it. The trunk was lined with very thin, golden lines in unreadable runes. The handle was silver, and shaped like a snakes head.

"This is… Hogwarts' Trunk." she said, coming to a halt. "While its name might not be promising, it's an ancient trunk made far from here. The golden runes give the trunk extra protection, and will stop anybody but the bound owner from opening it. It contains three, equally large, trunk-sized compartments, and four smaller side compartments. It also contains… well, maybe it's better if I show you." she said, before opening the bottom drawer of the trunk.

It was a thin compartment, and contained a trapdoor made of brown wood, with a golden handle. Madam Tugwood tugged on the handle, and the trapdoor opened, revealing a silver ladder going down. They followed her down the ladder into a room made of grey concrete. Along the three walls facing the ladder were a total of five doors. The long wall across from them contained three doors. Well, sort of. He couldn't quite explain it, but the two side doors looked a bit transparent. In the middle was a wooden door, its edges made of gold. There were golden plaques above the three doors which read, from left to right: "Common Room", "Choice Room" and "Room of Requirement". Hagrid's eyebrows rose as he read the last plaque.

"What?" Harry asked him, after seeing the look on his face.

"The Room o' Requirement… It be a sor' of myth. 's about a room which summons yer needs. So if yeh want it ter be a cosy room, that's wha' it becomes. I didn' think it actually existed, though." Hagrid said.

"That is true." Madam Tugwood said. "It gives you whatever room you need. Now, as for why these are sort of transparent, while the others aren't…" she began. Harry didn't listen, for he was looking at the two double doors in both side walls. The one on the left read "Great Hall" and the one on the right said "Hospital Wing".

"Mr Potter?" Madam Tugwood asked.

"Oh, sorry!" he said, embarrassed for not listening to her.

"It's quite alright. As I was saying, the room of requirement is meant to be summoned. It's not normally a door, that's why it's transparent." she said. "As for the common room, it adjusts to the owner's house. As soon as it's owner sorted, the door will become that of his or her house common room."

"So how do you summon the Room of Requirement, ma'am?" he asked, intrigued now.

"It's simple." she said. "You pace back and forth in front of it three times, while thinking what you need. So say, you would want a library, you would pace thrice and think: 'I need a library'. Now, I should probably explain the rules."

"Rules?" Harry asked.

"Yes, this is not simply an amazing object which you can use to infiltrate Hogwarts or to abuse. It has its limits." she said. "First of all, you can only use it inside of Hogwarts. Anywhere else, no door will open." she looked at Harry as he nodded, seeing the importance of that rule.

"The second rule… for every door you open, you lose 5 house points. For the Room of Requirement, you lose 20." she said.

Harry looked thoughtful. He hadn't heard all that much from Hagrid.

The giant man in question spoke up. "That's fair, I think. Although I did not earn lots of points mesself, you get a few points for answerin' questions correctly in class, normally one or two or five." he said. "But be careful, yeh can also lose points if yeh misbehave."

Harry nodded, prompting Madam Tugwood to continue. "Lastly, there's the choice room. It is self-explanatory; you may choose a room in Hogwarts for it to be connected to. There are limitations, however." she said. "You may not change the choice room once you have chosen, so choose wisely. You may choose from any classroom, such as potions or transfiguration, the kitchens, the staffroom, the library or your Head of House's office. You do not have to decide the choice room on purchase. You may choose a room by tapping your wand on the door and saying the name of the room."

Harry was trying to take this all in. "Could you write that all down, if I decide to purchase it? And also, how much does it cost?" he asked.

She seemed to think for a moment. "Yes, I can write that down for you. As for the cost… normally it's 500 galleons, but I'll make it 450 galleons. You are the Boy-Who-Lived, after all." she said.

Despite the fact that she was being nice, it took some effort not to roll his eyes at her. "Thank you, ma'am. That's awfully nice of you." he said, sincerely grateful. He had essentially just gotten his school supplies for free.

He looked in his money bag. The discoloured patch of cloth on the front said it contained 463 galleons. This meant he would have 13 galleons left for on the train and at Hogwarts. He was content with that, he probably wouldn't need any money at Hogwarts anyway.

"Oh, one final thing," she started "the metal colours will change according to your House allegiance."

All in all, it seemed like a very good trunk. He didn't have any expensive possessions (yet), but the defensive charms were nice. If he was going to spend this money wisely, which was only a fraction of what lay in his vault, this would be a worthwhile investment.

Harry smiled. "I'll take it."

* * *

**Well? How was that for a first chapter? I'm new to this site (in terms of posting, I've read quite a lot of fics mesself), so I'm not sure if the line breaks worked and all. What did you think of the story? I'm hoping at least somebody will read this, the feeling of somebody appreciating your work is great. Nevertheless, I hope you liked it. Look forward (or not) to another chapter coming within probably 1-2 weeks (sorry, but don't hold it against me if not, I'm new to scheduling this and all!). Next chapter... we'll you'll see. Cheers!**

**P.S. Flames are accepted, but will be distinguished. Feel free to leave criticism, it helps a lot!**


	2. Chapter 2: Hogwarts Arrival

-insert disclaimer line, J.K. Rowling credit, owns everything, blah-

**A/N: Thanks guys, I got like 80 views on my first chapter! That might sound a bit pathetic, but I never expected it to get that many. Therefore, this is posted earlier than intended. Enjoy! **

* * *

_Chapter Two: __Hogwarts Arrival_

Harry was standing in front of Platform 10 at King's Cross, holding his ticket, when he realised something. Hagrid hadn't actually told him how to get onto the platform. 'That might pose a bit of a problem.' he mused. Was it a test? Maybe you could only get in if you were smart enough.

He wasn't going to ask a guard, he wasn't stupid. That would just be silly. There must be some way. Maybe you needed a password?

He was about to utter the word 'muggle' to the ticket box in front of Platform 10, when a bushy haired girl came strolling by loudly. "No dad, it _has _to be here. It has to!" she said to her father.

Harry perked up. Maybe she was looking for the platform, too?

"Now Hermione, are you sure they haven't told you anything?" her mother asked her.

"No! I'm sure." she said in a worried tone. "Maybe it's some kind of test? Maybe you can only see it if you are smart enough!" she exclaimed, seemingly horrified at the idea.

Harry had heard enough. He approached them, and they turned to regard him. "Uhm… excuse me? Are you looking for Platform 9 ¾ too?" he asked the bushy haired girl.

"Yes!" she said, looking hopeful. Then her face fell. "You don't know where it is, either?" she asked glumly.

"No, sorry… I was raised by muggles." he replied to her. "Maybe we should just try something?" he proposed.

She sighed. "There must be a logical explanation. I'm sure…" her voice faltered as she looked behind him. "Did those people just… disappear through the barrier?" she asked.

Harry spun around so fast his neck hurt. He rubbed it in pain. He looked at the barrier of Platform 10, where a family of red-headed people were standing. He saw that she was correct. Two of the group had just ran and disappeared into the barrier.

He looked at the girl, Hermione he thought her name was. "Shall we…?" he asked. She nodded, and they followed the red-headed group, the last of which was just running at the barrier, before disappearing in an instant.

"Do we just… run at it?" she said, a bit worried. "That seems… dangerous. What if we crash into it?"

"Well we don't really have any choice." Harry said, looking at the clock next to the platform. "Look, it's ten to eleven. We only have ten minutes left." He turned his trolley to face the barrier. His owl, who he had decided to call Pugnix, hooted. Many people turned to look at him, and he ignored them.

He regarded her parents, who looked equally confused. He shrugged, closed his eyes and ran at the barrier, hoping his cart wouldn't crash and oh please don't make me look like a fool don't make me crash I'm a wizard now please let me through and-

Harry opened his eyes. He was standing on a very crowded platform. Parents were yelling after little children who were screaming with joy, people young and old were lined around the platform, trunks and cages and animals were everywhere and a plague above the barrier said 'Platform 9 ¾ - Hogwarts Express'.

He looked at the giant, red stream train in front of him. It was massive, and there were at least 10 carriages trailed behind it.

His thoughts were interrupted when he was almost knocked to the ground by a girl colliding with his back. "I'm so sorry!" the girl from earlier yelled.

"No, it's fine. I should have moved to the side." Harry replied.

Just then, her parents came onto the platform with her trolley, their eyes wide with shock and awe.

"Hermione was it?" he asked her. "I'm Harry. Harry Po- _please don't give me that look_." he said sharply, seeing her eyes dart to his scar. He covered it instinctively. The month he had spent at the Leaky Cauldron had been fairly uneventful, but whenever he had visited the shops –or in particular, the ice cream parlour- in Diagon Alley, he was followed by whispers and people glancing at his scar. It was getting quite annoying, really.

"I'm sorry!" she said again. "But I've read all about you! You're famous!" she said.

"No kidding." he muttered. He glanced at his watch. "Come on, the train leaves in five minutes."

She looked at her parents, and then hugged them individually. "I'll miss you." she said. "We'll miss you too, dear. Now go on, the train is leaving." the reply came.

With that, she took her trolley, and they headed for the train. They took one of the last compartments, since most of the others were full. In the corner sat a boy with brown hair, reading a book. "Hello." he said when they entered.

"Do you mind?" Harry asked. "Most of the others are full."

"Oh, please." he said, indicating the empty bench. "Take a seat. There's plenty of space." he said, and he went back to reading his book.

Harry and Hermione sat down next to each other.

"Which house do you think you'll be in?" Harry asked, to no one in particular. "Ravenclaw." answered the boy, without even looking up.

Hermione considered it. "I'm not sure…" she said. "I mean, I could go either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, I think."

"Yeah, that's me as well." Harry said, glad he wasn't alone. He looked at the boy again. "What is your name?" he asked politely.

The boy put the book down, sighing. "I suppose I won't be reading for a while." he asked not unfriendly.

Harry grinned. "I suppose not."

"My name is Terry Boot." he said. "And you are…?"

"I'm Harry Potter, and this is…" he said, looking at Hermione, whose last name he didn't know.

"I'm Hermione Granger. Pleasure." she said.

"Hello Harry Potter and Hermione." Terry said. "Do you read?" he asked, tapping his book.

"Yes." came the instant reply from Hermione.

"Err…" Harry said. "My Aunt and Uncle don't let me read any books."

They gaped at him. "They don't let you _read_? That's awful!" Hermione said, while Terry n odded.

"Well I can't read while I'm doing tasks around the house anyway…" he said. "I do them often. My Aunt and Uncle don't really like me."

"Oh." was all they could say. Hermione pursed her lips.

The train started moving. Hermione looked out the window, and waved at her parents. She kept waving until they rounded the corner, and Platform 9 ¾ escaped their view.

* * *

They sat in silence for a while, while Harry looked out the window.

He had actually read a book once, now that he thought about it, and not counting school books. When he was 9, he had found a book about dreaming at Ms Figs place, and she had allowed him to read it. It contained all kinds of information about dreaming, and remembering your dreams, and even controlling them. The book had fascinated him. He realised that he liked books, then. Ever since he hadn't been able to get one for himself, as he didn't get any pocket money from his Aunt and Uncle. He didn't share this particular story with Terry or Hermione though, since he thought it was pitiful, and he didn't want his new friends to pity him.

Terry was rummaging in his trunk. "Here." he said, tossing him a book. It was titled 'The discovery of America'.

"Thanks." Harry said, opening the book.

"Any time." he replied, looking at Hermione, who was in turn looking at Harry. "Do you want one too?" Terry asked her.

"No, thank you." she said. "I brought my own." And she had brought her own. She opened her trunk, revealing about two-thirds of it covered in books, while the rest contained clothing and other things cramped together. She thought for a moment and took out a book. They all started reading.

Harry had found his book quite interesting. 'How could you discover an entire new land on accident?' He wondered, while flipping through the pages. He had finished it. It wasn't a thick book, but it had taken him about two hours.

* * *

About ten minutes later, an elderly woman with a friendly face knocked on the compartment door and opened it. "Anything from the trolley, dears?" she asked them. Terry reluctantly looked up from his book, and fixed her with his Super Icy Stare of Doom. Hermione didn't even look up.

Harry inspected the trolley. It had everything and then some: lemon cakes, lemon tarts, pumpkin juice, fruit-bats, chocolate frogs, multi-coloured beans, and more. The prizes weren't high at all, so he took out two galleons. "I'll take some of everything, please." he said, wanting to try everything at least once. Hermione did actually look up at that.

The woman pushed the trolley back into the hallway, and Harry picked up one of the packages which looked like a small circus tent, only with faces on it and 'Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans' on the front. He opened the package, and took one out.

"Don't eat that one." Terry said with a serious expression. "Nor that one." he said, as Harry took out a different one. "No, not that one either. Actually, just don't eat any of them."

"_What_?" Harry asked, annoyed. "Surely there are good flavours too?"

Terry fixed him with a very serious glare. "Fine, eat them. And don't come to me when you're crying about how it tastes like dried cat litter."

Harry gaped at him. "I take it you don't want any, then?" he asked Terry, while handing Hermione the package. Terry simply went back to reading his book.

Hermione took one out, and her face turned into a smile. "Chocolate pudding!" she exclaimed.

Hopeful, Harry took out one too. He immediately spat it out. "_Not _chocolate pudding, that one."

Hermione giggled, which was a refreshing sound. Terry looked at him with a glint in his eye.

"I know, I know. You told me." Harry said. Terry smiled.

The rest of the hour went as follows: Hermione and Terry occasionally raiding Harry's stack of supplies, and Harry examining the colour of the beans and trying to guess what flavour it was. At last, Harry exclaimed "Strawberry cheesecake!" triumphantly. After that, he asked Terry for another book. Hermione handed him a book titled 'Hogwarts: A History'.

"Read it." she said. "It's fascinating."

The next few hours Harry spent reading about how you can't apparate inside Hogwarts, which sounded an awful lot like teleporting, and how its ceiling was enchanted to look like the night sky.

Hermione coughed. "We should put on our robes now. It's getting dark and we will probably arrive soon."

* * *

"Firs'-years, firs'-years over here!" A familiar voice boomed over the Hogsmeade train station. Harry, Terry and Hermione went over to Hagrid. "Why hello there, Harry! Did yeh have a nice time in Diagon Alley?" he asked. Terry and Hermione looked at Harry, seemingly impressed that he knew the giant man.

Harry flashed a smile. "Yeah, I did." he jokingly narrowed his eyes. "Although _someone_ forgot to tell me how to get onto the platform." he said.

Hagrid shuffled his feet nervously. "Oh right, sorry 'bout tha'! I completely forgot!" he said apologetically. Harry just laughed. "Don't worry about it, we found it." Hagrid smiled at that.

Together, they all entered the boats on the lake. Hagrid had a boat to himself, and Harry, Terry and Hermione had one together. Harry and Hermione gaped at the castle, simply awestruck at the sight. "I hadn't expected it to be this big." Hermione said. "There must be a huge library in there!" she continued with a glint in her eye. Terry and Harry nodded in unison.

They glided across the lake. The surface barely rippled, it was almost as though they were floating. At one point, a black tentacle rose above the waters, _waving _at them. Harry just started. He didn't know whether to laugh or be scared. He waved back hesitantly. The tentacle disappeared back into the water, and Harry felt something push their boat with force. Hagrid watched with wide eyes as they sped past him, all three of them laughing with joy. "This is great!" Harry yelled.

After a while, the tentacle led them back to the group. People yelled at them from all sides. "How did you do that?", "Was that a squid?" one even joked "Are you a wizard?"

Soon enough, they were approaching the shore. They got out of the boats, and followed Hagrid up to the castle, chatting excitedly. "The book I lent you on the train said something about a giant squid!" Hermione said excitedly. "That must have been it!"

* * *

They continued to chat until they got to the giant double doors that marked the entrance of the school.

Hagrid pushed them inwards, and they all scurried into the entrance hall, where a stern looking professor was waiting. She spoke with a Scottish accent, identified herself as 'Professor McGonagall' and explained to them the sorting ceremony. "Now, you will all wait here while I make the necessary arrangements." she said, walking away through a side door where Hagrid has disappeared into previously.

After a while, she came back. "We are ready for your arrival." she said. And with that, she opened the other two giant double doors.

The hall was massive. There were four large tables, one for each house he assumed, and one big staff table perpendicular to the house tables. Hundreds of students sat at the tables wearing black robes and pointy black hats. Ghosts sat at the table, mingled in with the students. Harry looked at the staff table. In the middle of the table sat a wizened old man with a long, silver beard and half-moon spectacles balancing on his nose bridge. He looked at the students with mild curiosity. When he saw Harry he smiled.

Harry looked up. Sure enough, the ceiling was black and blue, a glowing white moon straight above them, accompanied by hundreds upon hundreds of stars. He poked Hermione's arm. "Look, the ceiling!" he said.

"I know!" she gasped excitedly. "It's beautiful in here!"

They followed Professor McGonagall to the front of the hall, where they stood in front of a stool with an old, brown leather hat on it. "That's the Sorting Hat." Terry whispered unnecessarily to them.

Suddenly, the rim on the old hat opened, scarily reminiscent of a mouth. Then, it started to sing. It was a song about the four houses and their founders, and Harry found it to be quite interesting.

When the song ended, Professor McGonagall took out a list. "When I call out your name, you will come forth and put on the Sorting Hat, who will sort you into your house." she said.

"Abbott, Hannah." she called out. A blonde girl came forward and put the sorting hat on. "HUFFLEPUFF!" the hat exclaimed after a few seconds.

"Bones, Susan." a nervous looking red-haired girl strode forward before putting on the hat. The hat thought for just a moment. "HUFFLEPUFF!" it exclaimed once more.

"Boot, Terry." Professor McGonagall said. Terry came forward confidently. The hat barely touched his hat before calling out "RAVENCLAW!" And Terry joined his house members at the Ravenclaw table.

After a while, it was Hermione's turn. She climbed the steps, and put the hat on. It seemed to consider her for a while, and everybody waited in silence for about half a minute. Then it called out "RAVENCLAW!" and Hermione beamed under loud applause, before walking to the Ravenclaw table.

It continued like that for a little while. A pompous looking boy with blond hair was sorted into Slytherin. Finally, Professor McGonagall called out "Harry Potter." and the hall went dead silent. Harry swallowed as he climbed the steps. He took a seat on the stool, and put the hat firmly on his head.

"Ah… interesting." a voice murmured in his head. "A drive to prove yourself, unmatched bravery and a thirst for knowledge… hmm… But where do I put you? You could go in Slytherin, yes… it would help you on your way to achieve greatness. But that won't do… wait… I can see it… you have our trunk?"

"Yes…" Harry thought silently. The hat was scaring him a bit. "I didn't mean to scare you…" the voice sounded in his mind again. "But hmm… with that trunk, you can do great things, you know. I wonder, if you will figure out its secrets. In that case, better be…" Harry quickly thought "Wait! What sec-"

"RAVENCLAW!" the hat bellowed. Everybody in the hall was quiet. The hat had been on his head for nearly two whole minutes. Then, the hall erupted in applause. The Headmaster sat up in his chair, looking at Harry approvingly. Harry took off the hat, and went to join Terry and Hermione at the Ravenclaw table. Several people clapped him on the back and congratulated him. Terry nodded with a smile and Hermione beamed.

The sorting resumed. One of the redheaded kids he had seen on the platform was sorted into Gryffindor, to loud applause of his whole family there. The sorting ended with "Zabini, Blaise" being sorted into Slytherin.

The Headmaster stood up. "I have a few things to announce, but first we shall eat. Therefore, whale, Easter lantern, cannon orca man eel!" he said. Everybody in the hall clapped, while Harry looked confused. An upperclassman Ravenclaw turned to look at them. "Most of the hall thinks he is mad, but we know better. If you take the first letter of each word, he just welcomed you all." he said knowingly.

"Huh." All three of them said. Then the food appeared, and they dug in.

The feast ended with Dumbledore telling them about dangers inside the third floor corridor, the Forbidden Forest and some other things. "Well then, off to bed. May your sleep be full of wisdom and apple sauce!" he bellowed. "Was that another secret message?" Harry asked the same boy. "No, that was just mad." he replied, before everybody started moving towards the doors.

"First years, follow me please!" the Ravenclaw prefects called out. They all followed them to the dormitories, high up in a tower. A door marked their entrance. In the middle of the door was a bronze, eagle-shaped knocker. "Now, this is the entrance to your dormitory. While most houses have a password, we think that is inconvenient." A prefect said, before knocking on the door with the eagle-shaped knocker.

It opened its eyes and beak, and spoke. "I am an odd number. Take from me a letter and I become even. What number am I?" it said.

They all looked at each other. "Seven." Hermione said confidently. The knocker closed its eyes and the door swung inwards. "Very good. Two points to Ravenclaw." The prefect said. "For now, the riddles will be fairly easy. But soon enough they will be harder. If you don't know the answer to a riddle, you have to wait until somebody else comes who does. That way you learn."

"That's brilliant." whispered Hermione. Harry and Terry nodded, and they went inside.

The common room was a wide, circular room with a midnight blue carpet. The ceiling was dome-shaped and painted with the same blue as the carpet, along with many stars. Plenty of windows lined the walls, as well as tons of bookcases. Hermione made a craving noise.

Tables and chairs were everywhere in the room, and in the middle was a fire pit. The entrances to the dormitories were two staircases, both on each side of a big, white marble statue of a beautiful witch wearing a tiara. "These are the staircases to your dormitories." the prefect said. "Left is for the boys, right is for the girls. Well then, you should probably go to sleep. Good night."

Harry looked at Hermione. "Good night, Hermione. See you tomorrow."

"Good night, Harry, Terry." she said, before walking up the staircase. Harry and Terry went up the other one. Their dormitory was also circular, and contained five four-poster beds made of dark brown wood and blue curtains. Harry found his trunk and owl already there.

"Hello there, Pugnix." Harry said, stroking her feathers. She nibbled on his finger, before resting her head under her wing and going to sleep. Apparently she had waited for him.

"That's a beautiful owl." a boy said opposite his bed. "My name is Stephen Cornfoot."

"Pleasure to meet you, Stephen. I'm Harry Potter. This is Terry Boot." he said, indicating Terry.

"Pleasure." Stephen said, before crawling into his bed. Two other boys turned to look at him, already in bed. "I'm Anthony Goldstein, and this is Michael Corner." one of them said.

"Nice to meet you." Harry replied, before pushing his trunk under his bed and crawling into it himself. It had been a long day, yes. But it had been a good one.

Tomorrow he would try out his new trunk.

* * *

**Don't hate me too much for not doing anything with the trunk yet, that will be in the next chapter, promise! Hoped you liked this one. Flames accepted, reviews encouraged. Have a nice day!**


	3. Chapter 3: Classes

Disclaimer: I've heard stories of a man who claimed he had written Harry Potter, and that J.K. Rowling was a liar. Banshees whisper a God came down himself and smashed him into non-existence.

**A-hem. Here's chapter three for you folks, I hope you like it. I'm sorry if it's a bit dull, I didn't have much inspiration. I was originally intending to upload on Friday, but I have been landsailing and travelling a bit in Portugal, which was really fun. I haven't fully decided on a schedule, probably a week, though. I'm not sure if I'll do every =day here (probably Friday or Saturday)=, or if I will decide on uploading every week, give or take a day. I'll tell you when I decide.****  
**

**Also, if anybody is interested, I'll upload the layout of Harry's trunk and his schedule on my profile. Leave me a review or PM me if you want either of them.**

**Without furthurr adurr, enjoy!**

* * *

Harry was awoken by the soft whistling of a bird outside. Which was a tad odd, Harry thought, since they were about five floors up. Nevertheless, he got out of bed and got dressed.

Just as he was putting on his robes, Terry called out to him. "Good morning, Harry." he said, half asleep.

"Morning, Terry." Harry replied, and he finished getting dressed. He waited for Terry to get dressed too, and then they walked downstairs toward the common room.

"Good morning!" Hermione said cheerfully, as she came up to walk beside Harry. "Excited for classes?" she asked.

"Yes." Terry said, just as Harry said "Yes, but I'm looking forward to breakfast."

Hermione narrowed her eyes jokingly. "You pig!" she said, and then she laughed. Together they walked to the Great Hall.

They took their seats at the Ravenclaw table and started stacking things on their plates. "We're here early." Terry said, looking around. Harry looked around and indeed, there weren't that many people here yet. Harry shrugged and continued munching on his bacon, more peopling already entering the hall. He tried to ignore the whispers from the people walking past. At least most of the Ravenclaws were decent enough to leave him alone, although a few were staring at him. Or rather, at his scar.

He considered telling them about his trunk immediately, but he discarded the idea. They would probably lecture him about the importance of house points and not ruining their chance at the cup.

Harry decided he could better do some reading before getting to class, and he took out his charms book. He started reading the first chapter, which was about the Unlocking Charm. It was a charm which, quite obviously, could unlock doors and windows. He continued reading for a while, quite interested. His reading was interrupted midway through their breakfast when Professor Flitwick, the Charms professor and their Head of House, came up to their table.

"Ah, good!" he squeaked. "Some are already reading up on today's lesson. Good, good!" Harry, Terry and Hermione looked up. They had all been reading _The Standard Book of Spells_.

Professor Flitwick handed out the schedules. Harry took his and looked it over. They had Charms class first thing in the morning followed by Transfiguration. After lunch was Defence Against the Dark Arts, followed by a free period and then double History of Magic.

Harry looked up. "We've got Charms immediately!" he exclaimed excitedly.

On Tuesday, Herbology and a free period. Potions after lunch, then Charms and then double Transfiguration. On Wednesday they had Herbology, Potions, lunch, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Charms, a free period and finally History of Magic.

Thursday and Friday were a little different. First on Thursday was Herbology, followed by Charms, lunch and double Potions. After that they had Transfiguration, and then Flying Lessons. Next to Flying Lessons was an asterisk. He traced down to the bottom of the page. Next to an asterisk was written '_Flying Lessons will start on the second Thursday of the school year'_ That was a free period for now, then.

On Friday they simply had double Defence Against the Dark Arts in the morning, and then… "We have the afternoon off on Friday. Great!" Terry said, just as Harry came to the same conclusion.

"Yes, that is correct, Mr Boot." Professor Flitwick said, who had apparently lingered. "It is usual to have the afternoon off on Friday. We deem it important to let people rest early. Or, of course, you could use it to study." he said squeakily, before returning to the High Table.

Having fully reviewed their schedules, the three of them finished their breakfast and put their books back in their bags. "We still have a good half hour before Charms starts. Why don't we go to the library?" Harry proposed. Terry and Hermione quickly agreed, and they up to the library.

Once there, they sat down at a table in the middle of the library. "What should we read up on?" Harry asked. They thought about it for a moment. "You know," Hermione started "I read in _Hogwarts: A History _that Hogwarts uses house-elves to cook, and that they also do other tasks. There isn't any more information on them in there, though. Maybe we could find some on them in here?"

"I could just tell you about them, you know." Terry said.

Hermione smiled. "Right, I forgot. Well, you can tell us the basics, and then we'll look up some more interesting things about them in here."

Terry nodded. "Well alright. But promise me you won't get upset." he said.

"Why would I get upset?" Hermione asked, before seeing his look. "Well alright, go on."

"House-elves are creatures bound to their masters for life, unless they are given clothing, symbolizing their freedom. They do all sorts of tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, but most of the time you won't notice them."

"I see." Harry said. "So they are sort of like a combination of a maid and a personal chef?"

"Well… not really." Terry said, grimacing. "You see… they don't get paid."

Hermione inhaled quickly. "_What_?" she said. "You mean… they are slaves?" she asked, horrified at the idea. And frankly, so was Harry.

"No!" Terry said quickly. "Well… yes, but hear me out. It's not that bad. They really like what they do. They have served people for ages, and they are happy with it. They like working, and if you even so much as _mention _being freed, or working for money, they get upset. They love working, please understand."

"Well… if you put it that way…" Hermione said nervously. "I still don't like it, though."

Terry grimaced again. "Well… it's worse. House-elves are usually owned by rich families, and frankly, they don't treat them well. I mean, they won't abuse them, but they generally think of them as much lower life-forms. A lot of house-elves punish themselves when they do something wrong, by injuring themselves for example. But it can't be helped, it's how they live. They don't mind, really."

Hermione's look almost killed him on the spot. Before she could speak, however, Terry quickly said "But of course, Hogwarts house-elves are treated well. Dumbledore is a great man, he treats them very well. They don't get to punish themselves, either."

They continued chatting about house-elves for a bit, Hermione really was quite upset.

"Oh!" Harry said, glancing at his watch. "Charms begins in five minutes, we have to hurry! We'll check out the books another time." he said. They grabbed their book bags and hurried off to Charms. Fortunately, they weren't too late. In fact, several people came in shortly after them. Harry, Terry and Hermione said down, next to some fellow Ravenclaws. Harry was surprised to see they were the only house in the classroom.

Professor Flitwick climbed onto the podium in the front of the class, barely being able to see over a stack of books. He really was tiny. "Good morning, class!" he said in a high tone. "I would like to introduce myself, seeing the role I will be playing. My name is Professor Flitwick, and I will be your Charms professor and your Head of House. If you have any worries or troubles, do not hesitate to come to me for help or advice. I am always there when you need me."

Harry liked the tiny man already. He was wondering what they would learn throughout the year. A sixth year prefect had told him Professor Flitwick used to be a duelling champion.

"Well then, let us begin." the Professor squeaked, interrupting Harry's thoughts. "Today we will be learning the Unlocking Charm. It unlocks mostly doors, but other things as well. They incantation is as follows. Please repeat after me." "_Alohomora_" he said.

"_Alohomora_" they all said.

"Very good!" said Professor Flitwick. "Once more, "_Alohomora_""

"_Alohomora_" they repeated.

"Very well. Now, let us practise the wand movement. The wand movement is as such." He drew a glowing blue, curvy line in the air with his wand. "You may see that it resembles an open lock. Please all practise the wand movement for a while now, while I come and check on your technique."

They began practising the movement, which was still glowing blue above the podium. Flitwick walked past them a few times, nodding approvingly each time he did so. "Try it a bit more from the wrist, Mr Potter, yes, like that."

"Alright class, I think you are ready for the practical part of the lesson." Professor Flitwick said after a while, strolling back to the podium. He floated several locks to them. "You may now practise the incantation, "_Alohomora_", and the wand movement together in an attempt to open the lock. May you succeed, simply close your lock and try again. You may succeed once, but practice ensures that you can use it consistently." And with that, he began walking past them again.

"_Alohomora_" Harry said, waving his arm. "_Alohomora_" he said again, to no avail.

After about five minutes, Harry heard a _click _and he looked next to him to see Hermione's open lock lying before her. "Well done, Miss Granger, well done!" Flitwick said. "Three points to Ravenclaw for succeeding so fast!"

They all continued to practise, Hermione succeeding at most of her attempts. Soon after Hermione, Harry heard _click_, _click_,_ click_. His own lock had opened successfully, just a bit after remembering to use his wrist instead of his arm. He looked next to him, where Terry had also succeeded, as well as a boy opposite him. Soon after that, most of the class succeeded, and Flitwick wrapped up the lesson. "I will see you all tomorrow afternoon, be sure to practise some more!" he said, while they exited the classroom.

"That was interesting!" Hermione said.

"Yeah, it was." Harry replied. "And we all succeeded, too. You even got us some points. Great job, Hermione." Hermione blushed.

"We better get to Transfiguration. From what I've heard, Professor McGonagall can be quite stern." Terry said.

And thus, they hurried off to the Transfiguration classroom.

The rest of the day went by quite smoothly. They tried (and some, including the three of them, succeeded in) turning matchsticks into needles. Harry had not forgotten he needed to earn some points, and was happy when McGonagall awarded him five points for getting his matchstick to change first (even though Hermione's came a few seconds after, and her attempt was a lot better).

In their free period they went to the common room and started reading up on Potions for tomorrow's lesson. From what they had gathered, Snape was harsh and even downright mean when you didn't know anything. Little did they know he was mean anyway, even if you knew everything. They spent a while reading the chapters and remembering some ingredients and things alike. After a short while, they packed their bags and went to History of Magic.

History of Magic was, admittedly, quite dull. Two lessons of Professor Binns, their teacher, droning on about goblin rebellions and things Harry had already forgotten were quite, well… boring. He figured the three of them could just read the book during the lessons instead of listening to Professor Binns, since they would at least learn _something_ that way.

However, halfway through the second lesson, Hermione raised her hand. Professor Binns stared at her. Apparently nobody usually asked any questions at all in this classroom.

"Yes, Miss Grungeons?" he asked her.

"Granger, Professor." she replied. "I was wondering, could you teach us a bit about house-elves? I've read about them, and they seem quite fascinating to muggle-borns such as I. I was wondering… could you teach us a bit about their history and powers? It might be fun for you, to avert from your usual subject of goblin rebellions for once." she asked hopefully, hoping he wouldn't be too offended.

Professor Binns looked at her for a while. "I… guess I could teach you a bit about them." he said reluctantly. "But I would have to… prepare my lesson in advance, so I will do so another time." And with that, he returned to monotonously talking about the goblin rebellion of 1612, and half of the class returned to sleeping.

* * *

It was almost dinnertime, and Harry was standing in his dormitory, staring out the window. Terry had already gone down, but Harry wanted to try out his trunk. He figured he could read for a little more before entering the Great Hall via his trunk, since he had earned enough house points today. He was taking a little break from reading now, looking out the window at the mountains in the distance. _This place is really beautiful_ he mused.

He had just received a letter from Madam Tugwood, congratulating him on becoming a Ravenclaw and noting that his trunk colours and common room door should have changed by now, which they had indeed. His trunk was lined with beautiful silver metal, as it had first. But now the wood was of normal, deep brown colour and the silver metal bars were flanked by shining sapphire-coloured metals, lain in strips on both sides wherever the silver travelled. On the top side of his trunk was now painted the Hogwarts crest, containing the four houses. Three of the four were a bit greyed out, the Ravenclaw crest rich in colour to show his allegiance.

Madam Tugwood had mentioned that she had forgotten, clumsily, to tell him about the useful spells of the trunk. With a simple spoken "shrink" the trunk would shrink into a small, wooden block that would fit into his pocket, able to be carried around Hogwarts. Similarly, "follow" would make it lift up and float behind you. Harry tried them out and considered them very nifty commands. She also wrote that she had forgotten to mention what happened when using one of the doors. The trunk would then shrink, and disappear into his pocket, unless instructed otherwise by saying "stay", in which case it would close and remain where it stood.

Harry checked his watch. He really ought to go to the Great Hall by now. He slid open the lower level of his trunk, opened the trapdoor and climbed down. For a second, he gazed at the eagle knocker guarding the common room door. He wondered what would happen if he stood inside the common room and went through the door inside the trunk. He would try that out later, he thought.

He tried pushing the double doors of the Great Hall, but they wouldn't budge. He tried again, and they did open this time. He stepped inside. As he walked past the huge golden doors he heard the voice of a woman inside of his head, bellowing "_Five points from Ravenclaw!_" He tried turning around, but some force stopped him for a second. When he finally did turn around, he saw Hermione just walking inside of the Great Hall. "Harry!" she called out, and together they sat down at the Ravenclaw table.

"Harry, how…? I didn't see you walking in front of me, how did you suddenly appear?" she said.

"Hermione, you're going to have to be a bit more clear." he replied.

"Well at one point I was walking towards the Great Hall. I looked away for a second, and when I looked back you were suddenly walking in front of me."

Terry regarded him with a peculiar expression.

"Huh, that's kind of odd." Harry said, before piling a roasted chicken onto his plate and beginning to eat. Dinner was magnificent, as it had been yesterday.

_Yes, this year will be fun_, Harry mused, grinning and ignoring the stern look Hermione was giving him.


End file.
